Episode 2 of The Walking Dead Daryl Dixon season 3 titled "La Ofrenda" dropped past Sunday in good old fashion TWD series and honestly what the hell is happening with this show, the pacing feels way off compared to the first two seasons and I cant shake the feeling that something is missing now that Daryl and Carol are together again but Laurent is nowhere to be found so far on this season and I doubt he is going to show up if not at the end, its like the joke is over so whats next? feels like this season is really going to be challenge for the story. This episode takes us to Spain after that rushed transition from France to England and now somehow they made it across the water to Spanish territory, which by the way looks more like a mix of Mexico and Spain rather than authentic Spanish countryside but whatever I have never been in Spain so who Im to say if its or not Spain. The opening scene has Carol watching some young couple kissing in the water while Daryl comes screaming her name like an amateur, which is weird because Daryl is supposed to be this seasoned survivor who knows better than to make noise in the wilderness, but apparently the writers forgot about that detail again, its all this little things that matter and I can understand how the spin off might be transitioning now that Daryl and Carol are together but keep the essence and the basics of surviving the Zombie world at least, I know Zombies are not a problem anymore but humans are.
- IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13062500/
- Platform: PRIME VIDEO
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The couple turns out to be Roberto and Justina, two young lovers trying to escape from their community because of some tradition they dont want to be part of and when some armed guys show up looking for them, its here when Daryl takes them out with his crossbow like its nothing, that was expected and predictale but its fine. Roberto and Justina speak decent English which is convenient for the plot and we find out that Justina's grandmother is a healer who might be able to help Carol with whatever is bothering her because as I mention on episode one that wound she had didnt look that bad but seems she is all banged up and had a fever because of the infection, but Roberto doesnt want to go back to their town because something bad is supposed to happen there, going back to their "Ofrenda" tradition. Daryl being Daryl doesnt care about their relationship drama and just wants to get Carol the help she needs, so he basically forces them at gunpoint to take them to this place called Solas del Mar, which looks like a fortified medieval village with walls and everything, this spin off has become one with the best landscapes and the one with been on multiple countries on a single series.
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Once they get to the town we meet the mayor Federico who seems like a decent guy at first, welcoming them but also making it clear that strangers usually arent allowed to stay, but Roberto's father Antonio steps in and offers them shelter for a couple days. The town itself looks beautiful with all these drone shots showing the Spanish countryside and yeahh probably they filmed this at a real location because it has that authentic feel to it but how some of the characters dress is what throws me off but it could also be because its the apocalypse so some might not be according to the place and just surviving with whatever they got, but then these soldiers show up led by some guy who claims to be the next king of Spain bringing gifts and preparing for something called "la ofrenda" which translates to "the offering." Turns out this king character shows up once a year to collect one of the young women from the town as part of some arrangement where he provides protection and supplies in exchange for basically taking their daughters away, and nobody ever sees these girls again except for one woman who claims she had a good life after being chosen, I dont know why but this sounds like slavery to be honest, at some point dirty secrets going to be out.
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The whole offering thing is decided by a very very very short pig race where each pig has a girls name tied to it and whichever pig reaches the food first determines who gets taken away, which seems like a pretty messed up way to decide someones fate but the townspeople treat it like its some kind of honor, I was laughing at this stupidity, I couldnt believe they didnt even made the race longer or some how more interesting. A girl name Alba ends up being chosen instead of Justina and her grandmother who is apparently the mayors mother gets all defensive when Carol starts questioning their traditions at the dinner table, basically telling Carol she doesnt know anything about survival and should mind her own business. While all this is going on Daryl spots one of the guys he killed earlier among the kings men and realizes he needs to get out of there fast, so he grabs a knife from the dinner table and goes full Rambo mode taking out the threats one by one while the town is having their bonfire celebration where they burn all their old belongings to start fresh for the new year.
Looking back at this episode I have to say it feels like the show is struggling to find its identity now that the original mission of protecting Laurent is over, and while the Spanish setting looks awesome the whole political situation with the fake king and his offering system feels more like a western movie than The Walking Dead. The pacing continues to be a problem with them jumping from country to country without giving us time to really connect with the places or people, and honestly the walkers are so irrelevant at this point that I forgot this was supposed to be a zombie show. Carol's character development seems to be going in circles where she keeps trying to save people and Daryl just wants to go home, which is the same dynamic we have seen multiple times already but at least the action sequences were solid even if Daryl's stealth skills seem to come and go depending on what the plot needs. The episode sets up what should be an interesting conflict for the rest of the season and I bet they end up saving Alba somehow, but I'm still waiting for that spark that made the first two seasons so engaging, maybe once they figure out whether they want to be a travel show or actually deal with some zombie apocalypse drama things will pick up again.
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